Chapter 38: Steady Progress

The sound of construction had become part of Blackstone.

For the first few days, there had been little to see beyond workers digging and moving stone. By the fourth morning, a low foundation stretched across the plot opposite Wandering Cloud Tavern, with stacks of timber waiting nearby.

Travelers had stopped asking what was being built.

Word had spread.

Blackstone was getting an inn.

Lin Yuan carried a pot of noodles from the kitchen and placed it on the counter.

"Table six."

Xiao Lan picked it up.

"Two more orders after this."

"I heard them."

"You always say that."

"Because I always hear them."

Xiao Lan carried the noodles away.

Lin Yuan returned to the kitchen.

Both Spirit-Assisted Kitchen Stoves were in use. Soup simmered on one while meat cooked over the other.

The morning rush lasted another half hour before the tavern finally began to empty.

A group of cultivators left east.

Two hunters crossed toward Duan He’s shop.

Several merchants remained at a corner table, discussing whether to continue west or wait for another group.

Lin Yuan washed his hands.

"I’m going upstairs."

Su Mei nodded.

"We can handle it."

Lin Yuan left them to it.

That was one of the better changes in Wandering Cloud Tavern.

A few months ago, every customer meant he had to cook, serve, clean, collect payment, and prepare for whoever arrived next.

Now the tavern could continue without him for a few hours.

And those hours mattered.

Lin Yuan closed the door to his room.

The construction site was still audible through the window, but only faintly.

He sat cross-legged and took out a small bottle.

Qi Nourishing Pills.

He tipped one into his palm.

This was his second.

The first had already shown him what to expect. Its effect was modest, but reliable.

Lin Yuan swallowed it and began circulating his technique.

Spiritual Qi gradually gathered around him.

Blackstone’s Faint spiritual environment provided a steady foundation, while Wandering Cloud Tavern’s Minor Qi Gathering effect increased the concentration within the building.

The medicinal power spread through his body.

Lin Yuan guided his Qi through one circulation.

Then another.

There were no surprises.

What caught his attention wasn’t the pill.

It was his own cultivation.

His Qi moved more smoothly than before.

When he had first entered the ninth layer, the increase in Qi had required more attention to control. Even familiar circulation had needed small adjustments.

Those rough edges were disappearing.

Lin Yuan continued.

His breathing slowed.

The sounds outside faded from his attention.

Qi moved through his body in a steady rhythm, each circulation following the last without interruption.

Nearly two hours passed.

When the medicinal effect weakened, Lin Yuan completed one final circulation before opening his eyes.

He raised one hand.

Qi gathered around his fingers.

The response was immediate and steady.

Lin Yuan held it there for several breaths before letting it disperse.

He was still far from the peak of Qi Refining.

But he was no longer standing at the beginning of the ninth layer.

Lin Yuan looked at the bottle.

Three pills remained.

He returned it to his storage bag.

There was no reason to rush them.

He still had time before reaching the limit of his current cultivation technique.

When that day came, he would need something capable of taking him into Foundation Establishment.

For now, there was still plenty of road left in front of him.

Lin Yuan picked up his sword and went downstairs.

Instead of using the courtyard, he walked around the tavern and headed farther into his territory.

The construction noise weakened behind him.

The land was still mostly dry and barren.

Mostly.

Lin Yuan noticed a few patches of green between the scattered stones.

He slowed.

Small grasses had pushed through the soil.

Nothing valuable.

The Stoneleaf Grass near the well hadn’t suddenly spread across Blackstone, nor had the wasteland transformed into fertile land.

But the change was visible now that he knew what to look for.

Blackstone’s Faint spiritual environment was slowly affecting the land.

Lin Yuan continued until he found a flat patch of open ground.

He drew his sword.

Cut.

Step.

Deflect.

Counter.

His movements connected smoothly.

Lin Yuan repeated the sequence, then changed the final thrust into an upward cut.

The first attempt was awkward.

He reset.

The second was better.

By the fifth, the transition connected naturally.

Lin Yuan changed it again.

A retreat became a turn.

The turn became a deflection.

His sword immediately followed.

He continued until sweat gathered along his forehead.

Lin Yuan lowered the sword.

His breathing was heavier, but controlled.

Then he heard hoofbeats.

Fast ones.

Lin Yuan looked toward the road.

Five riders were approaching Blackstone from the east.

He sheathed his sword.

Something about the group immediately stood out.

They weren’t traveling like merchants.

Each rode a Dusthorn Deer fitted with similar dark saddles and travel packs. Two riders led while the remaining three followed in a tight formation.

Their equipment matched.

So did the small metal badges at their waists.

Lin Yuan started back toward the road.

By the time he reached Wandering Cloud Tavern, the riders had stopped beside the warning board.

The man at the front dismounted.

He appeared to be in his thirties, with dark traveling robes and a long saber at his waist.

He read the warning from beginning to end.

Then he turned.

"Who maintains this notice?"

"I do."

The man’s gaze settled on Lin Yuan.

"You’re Lin Yuan?"

That caught Lin’s attention.

Most strangers asked whether he owned the tavern.

This one already knew his name.

"Yes."

The man clasped his hands briefly.

"We’re with Green River City’s Western Road Patrol."

Lin Yuan looked at the metal badge near his waist.

He hadn’t heard of them before.

The man continued.

"We inspect the western trade routes. Damaged road markers, missing caravans, dangerous spirit beasts. Problems that can affect regular travel."

Lin Yuan glanced at the other four cultivators.

They remained beside their mounts.

"You came because of the beasts?"

"We’ve received enough reports to investigate."

The patrol leader turned toward the warning board again.

His finger stopped beside one line.

Beasts Have Reached the Blackstone Area

"How many?"

"A few passed through. An injured Ironback Boar charged near the tavern several days ago."

"Anyone hurt?"

"No."

"You killed it?"

Lin Yuan nodded.

"Other species?"

"Windstep Hare. Some smaller beasts. Hunters reported Ashfang Wolves and Ironback Boars farther west."

"Attacks on the main road?"

"None confirmed around Blackstone."

The patrol leader nodded.

He turned toward one of his companions.

"Mark the road through Blackstone as passable."

The rider took out a small booklet and began writing.

Lin Yuan watched him.

"You’re going west?"

"That’s why we’re here."

"How far?"

"As far as conditions allow today. Tomorrow we’ll push farther."

Lin Yuan looked at the five cultivators again.

For weeks, information about the west had arrived through people who had chosen to leave it.

Hunters.

Caravans.

Travelers.

These five had come specifically to go the other way.

"Do you know what’s causing the beast movement?"

"No."

The answer came immediately.

Lin Yuan preferred that to another guess.

The patrol leader rested one hand near his saber.

"It could be a stronger spirit beast disturbing nearby territories. It could be an environmental change. Cultivator activity is another possibility."

"So you know nothing."

"We know enough to send five people."

Lin Yuan nodded.

Fair enough.

The patrol leader looked toward Wandering Cloud Tavern.

"Do you have rooms?"

"No."

The man looked at the building.

"Your sign says you do."

"Eight."

"And?"

"All occupied."

The patrol leader stared at him for a moment.

His gaze shifted across the road.

Master Zhou’s workers were raising part of the inn’s lower frame.

"What’s that?"

"An inn."

"When does it open?"

"Not today."

One of the riders laughed.

The patrol leader ignored him.

"We’ll eat before we leave."

"That I can do."

The five patrol members occupied a single table.

They ate quickly.

Instead of questioning everyone in the tavern, their leader asked Lin Yuan which people in Blackstone regularly dealt with travelers coming from the west.

Lin Yuan pointed toward Duan He’s shop.

"Him."

The patrol leader looked through the window.

"Beast materials?"

"Hunters sell to him."

That was enough.

After finishing their meal, the five crossed the road.

They spent nearly an hour with Duan He.

Two hunters who happened to arrive during that time were pulled into the conversation as well.

Lin Yuan left them to it.

By late afternoon, the five members of the Western Road Patrol returned to their mounts.

Several travelers had gathered outside.

A merchant stepped forward.

"Are you going west?" 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

The patrol leader adjusted his saddle.

"Yes."

"Is the road safe?"

"We’re going to find out."

Not exactly reassuring.

But nobody stopped them.

The five mounted.

Their Dusthorn Deer turned toward the western road.

Lin Yuan stood near the tavern entrance as they departed.

For several minutes, he watched them grow smaller in the distance.

Then they disappeared.

That evening, Master Zhou’s workers finally put down their tools.

Another section of the inn’s lower frame stood above the foundation.

It was beginning to resemble a building rather than a construction site.

The tavern filled again as the sky darkened.

A hunter ordered wine.

Someone argued with Qiao about the price of medicine.

Duan He closed his shop later than usual.

Nothing dramatic happened.

The western road remained open.

Travelers still came and went.

But something had changed.

Until now, every sign of trouble had moved in the same direction.

Hunters had come east.

Caravans had brought warnings east.

Spirit beasts had fled east.

This afternoon, five cultivators had ridden west.

Lin Yuan watched the empty road for a moment longer.

Then he turned and went back inside.